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PV Sindhu a gold medal prospect, expecting three gold medals from badminton at CWG 2022: Trupti Murgunde

'PV Sindhu a gold medal prospect, expecting three gold medals from Indian shuttlers at CWG 2022,' claims former badminton player Trupti Murgunde in an exclusive interview with Mykhel.

PV Sindhu a gold medal prospect, expecting three gold medals from badminton at CWG 2022: Trupti Murgunde

New Delhi, July 25: Former India shuttler Trupti Murgunde is expecting a minimum of three gold medals from the Indian badminton contingent at the upcoming Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham.

Murgunde - who bagged a bronze medal in 2006 CWG in Melbourne in the mixed team event - will be part of the commentary panel of the quadrennial event for the official broadcasters Sony Sports Network. The Pune-based shuttler interacted with media persons ahead of the showpiece event and shared her views about the CWG-bound Indian badminton players and also made her prediction for the medal tally. Murgunde also claimed that two-time Olympic medal winner PV Sindhu looks like a gold medal contender this time around.

Commonwealth Games 2022, India badminton Preview -- Strength, Weakness, Injury, Opponents, Medal PredictionCommonwealth Games 2022, India badminton Preview -- Strength, Weakness, Injury, Opponents, Medal Prediction

Here are the excerpts:

MK: What are PV Sindhu's chances in the competition as she won a silver in the previous edition as she lost the gold medal to Saina?

Trupti Murgunde: Very bright chances for Sindhu (of winning a gold medal) because of the way she's playing. The competitors who she's likely to face she enjoys an upper hand over them so definitely the two-time Olympic medallist has a good chance of clinching the yellow metal.

MK: Lakshya Sen, Gayathri Gopichand, and Treesa Jolly are some of the promising young talents. What are your thoughts on them?

Trupti Murgunde: Lakshya - post-Tokyo Olympics - has been doing very well. His current ranking is 10 at the moment and he's likely to be the second seed in the CWG. He has a bright future and we are quite hopeful that he qualifies for the Paris Olympics 2024. We are also looking at him for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics because he's pretty young and he's already made a mark in the international circuit.

Commonwealth Games 2022, Badminton Mixed Team: India Squad, Schedule, Points Table & Live Streaming InfoCommonwealth Games 2022, Badminton Mixed Team: India Squad, Schedule, Points Table & Live Streaming Info

Both Gayatri and Treesa Jolly are very young and they've had some good performances throughout the year. They still need to play a lot and it will be good exposure for them and if they pull this off then there's nothing like it. As I said, they need that extra exposure and need to be more consistent. Until now they've done reasonably well and they are our future.

kidambi srikanth

MK: How many medals can we expect from this contingent? Who all are the gold medal prospects?

Trupti Murgunde: I am looking at, say about, three golds. In the mixed team event, we may have a little bit of resistance but we have a good chance of winning the gold in the team events. Then the second would be PV Sindhu, considering the opponents she's going to face.

PV Sindhu hopeful of clinching a medal at Commonwealth Games 2022 after winning Singapore OpenPV Sindhu hopeful of clinching a medal at Commonwealth Games 2022 after winning Singapore Open

Also, I am looking at men's singles because Li Jijao of Malaysia is not participating in the tournament and Loh Yew Kean from Singapore - who is the reigning men's singles world champion - is the only tough opponent. But both our men's singles players Kidambi Srikanth and Lakshya Sen have been in good touch so I am hoping for gold from them as well.

Srikanth has had a few niggles in the past but he's been doing well recently. I would be hoping for an all-Indian final between Srikanth and Lakshya and that would be the best thing for Indian badminton and Indian sports as well.

MK: Players from which country or countries are going to pose a challenge to the Indian shuttlers at the CWG?

Trupti Murgunde: It will be Malaysia and Singapore teams then we have some players from England in some events, who might give some challenge to our players in the paired events. So, I think these three nations are going to challenge the Indian shuttlers in Birmingham.

MK: HS Prannoy has been a force to reckon with this year. What according to you has changed in his game?

Trupti Murgunde: I have always felt Prannoy was a talented player because of his understanding of the game. Some of his good performances came earlier as well but they were in patches. I think for some players the COVID-19 break did wonders and it was sort of a blessing in disguise for him because he was struggling with his injuries and health issues and that break, sort of gave him the time to rehabilitate from his injuries and introspection of his game helped him get mentally stronger and that is why he's made a comeback. He's making comeback in the matches from tense situations and looking more consistent. So these are certainly good signs for him.

Story first published: Monday, July 25, 2022, 21:37 [IST]
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